(04-02-2013 02:47 PM)Chas Wrote: It's time for him to grow some balls and give up the delusion and face reality. You, too.

Ah, but Chas, it's much more pleasant to knowbelieve tell yourself that you are chosen, special, better than the rest of the world and that - through no effort or merit of yours, but just 'cause. Who doesn't like winning the lottery.

Yes, I see.
It felt like winning the lottery the day you came to TTA.

Skepticism is not a position; it is an approach to claims.
Science is not a subject, but a method.

The people closely associated with the namesake of female canines are suffering from a nondescript form of lunacy.
"Anti-environmentalism is like standing in front of a forest and going 'quick kill them they're coming right for us!'" - Jake Farr-Wharton, The Imaginary Friend Show.

(04-02-2013 02:49 PM)kingschosen Wrote: 1) No. Christ is relevant because He is the conduit in which we can receive faith. The Bible also clearly states that faith is a gift from God. We do not have the ability to act upon God because of His omnipotence. God has to act upon us. If we can act upon Him, He is no longer omnipotent. When He does act upon us He gives us faith. This is known as a "regeneration".

Eph 2:8
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;

Rom 12:3
3 For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.

When we understand faith, we can understand why the ones who do not possess faith can't understand. God isn't reachable without faith; thus, cannot be reached through empirical evidence or is displayed through empirical evidence.

Jesus explains this in John 8:47 -“He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God.”

Those that aren't of God can't understand God and do not have faith which is a gift from God.

2) No sure what you mean. Why am I untrue to my religion? Why is being on TTA a sin?

Well..

How long until you are marching on each others churches? You know, like the good, ol' days of religion.

I think KC has the number advantage here, gotta be alot more Calvins than Verdidicehn... (however you say it)

That's "Calvinidiots and the Veriridiculous".

Skepticism is not a position; it is an approach to claims.
Science is not a subject, but a method.

Quote:Not sure why it's our fault that no one has given us a good enough reason to actually believe, since we have no choice in the matter of what we do or do not believe, but there you go.

It's true: We don't have much free will in this life, in this realm. That comes later. But God has given us a very little amount as human beings. We can choose what we believe. In fact, that's how we come to believe. Nowhere is that more apparent than in atheist vs. theist debates, because God, in His infinite sense of humor, has made the evidence for each side perfectly equal.

But one thing about the game we are playing here: It is for keeps.

wut.

The evidence is equal?

Do you mean there is just as much evidence for the existence of gods as there is for the non existence of gods?

In that case you would be right, there's absolutely none for either. But if you're trying to say that the evidence for Yahweh is just as strong as the evidence for evolution then I can only ask one thing.

Are you high?

Seriously. You haven't been able to find one piece of evidence for any of your claims at any point. Not once. Zip. Nada.

And no, we cannot choose what we believe. We can be convinced by the arguments of other people, but we have no choice over whether we are convinced or not. We can lie to ourselves and tell ourselves we believe something that we don't, but that's it.

The fact that you think we actually can choose leads me to the conclusion that you know you are talking bollocks and are lying to yourself as well.

Which would explain your Veridican stuff too. You knew Christianity was bull, but couldn't deal with it so you invented your own brand that you could pretend to believe in.

(04-02-2013 09:36 AM)TheBeardedDude Wrote: I like how he still managed to find gaps in a spectrum to fit his "god" into. I still have no idea what his "god" is. Is it still some consciousness in the universe or does it have physical form now?

It's in a constant state of quantum superposition and is only defined when measured. Problem is, fucker keeps taking new readings every month or so resulting in different collapsed wave function states. It sure as shit is fun to watch though. Kinda like some sorta quixotic metaphysical schizophrenic running around the room banging his head against different walls. Nothing particularly wrong with this, I do it myself to a much lesser degree and it's useful for breaking out of ruts, funks, and fugues, but I certainly don't feel any particular compulsion to proselytize it and turn it into some fucking ridiculous but highly entertaining Monty Python youtube skit out of it. ... And I'm smart enough to pad my fucking walls.

(04-02-2013 04:15 AM)Egor Wrote: If there is no God by what mechanism do you determine what is good or bad?

Same place you claim to, the Word of the Christ. The Red Letter Version of the New Testament. Difference is you religious fucks completely miss the point of the Word. The Christ's message was not to further aggrandize or to further adulate God. Quite the contrary, the Word is the Son of Man is the Son of God, now grow the fuck up and fucking act like it. That's all. It's easy. Religious fucks always looking for someone else to save their sorry ass. ... Fucking pussies if you ask me.

As it was in the beginning is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
And I will show you something different from either
Your shadow at morning striding behind you
Or your shadow at evening rising to meet you;
I will show you fear in a handful of dust.

(05-02-2013 12:21 AM)EvolutionKills Wrote: Simple question: If Egor can't even understand a concept as beautifully simple as evolution by natural selection, why should anybody take what he says about anything else seriously?

It's like watching somebody sitting there in leg braces yelling at us to TRUST HIM, he's going to WIN the IronMan Kona triathlon...

No, it's more like a guy dressed like a crazy hobo, standing on the street, holding a sign that reads lists certain criteria for eternal torment and punishment and that doing any of those things means you are going to a special place of eternal torment, torture, and rape by a hideous monstrosity whose vile rants, ramblings, and musings will be played non-stop until your ears bleed.

(04-02-2013 02:49 PM)kingschosen Wrote: No. Christ is relevant because He is the conduit in which we can receive faith. The Bible also clearly states that faith is a gift from God. We do not have the ability to act upon God because of His omnipotence. God has to act upon us. If we can act upon Him, He is no longer omnipotent. When He does act upon us He gives us faith. This is known as a "regeneration".

What is God, K.C.?

Quote:Eph 2:8
8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;

The "grace" is a gift of God. That's what grace means, an unwarranted gift.

Quote:Rom 12:3
3 For through the grace given to me I say to everyone among you not to think more highly of himself than he ought to think; but to think so as to have sound judgment, as God has allotted to each a measure of faith.

Again, what's up? Paul is saying right there that everyone has been given some measure of faith.

Quote:When we understand faith, we can understand why the ones who do not possess faith can't understand. God isn't reachable without faith; thus, cannot be reached through empirical evidence or is displayed through empirical evidence.

K.C., everyone believes in God. Even, and especially, the atheists in this forum. If you don't get that, you don't get human psychology at all. In time, and in my forum, I will prove this.

Quote:Jesus explains this in John 8:47 -“He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God.”

The passage you are referring to is correctly rendered in VGJC 38:1-24. Jesus is talking to the religious leaders, not to people in general. In order to understand that passage you have to meditate on what a "religious leader" represents in the context of the Gospel.

This predestination idea you have is inaccurate. It's really just another form of atheism. In your view, you believe God exists, but you make God irrelevant. Human beings become exactly what atheists consider them to be--automatons. And you nullify the Gospel because Jesus makes it clear that anyone can become his disciple if they will believe. Of course you know this verse:

“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life.
“God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but rather to save the world through Him." (VGJC 9:12-13)

The term "whosoever" implies anyone who read the Gospel and is willing to come into the light. If we do not have the free will to do that, then there is no point in Jesus Christ.

Quote:Those that aren't of God can't understand God and do not have faith which is a gift from God.

So, how do they get faith?

Quote:No sure what you mean. Why am I untrue to my religion? Why is being on TTA a sin?

Because you are deriving the fulfilment of your belonging needs from them. They give you your social status. That's why you capitulate to them. That's why you mock religion in your signature gif, so that you can be accepted by them. And I realize it's Benny Hinn, but you're displaying it as if you are spitting on the very concept of religion just as they do. Your walk with God is looking unsteady--and your philosophy excuses them. That's as plain as I can put it and as much as I can see from the plank that is in my own eye. I'm not judging you--I'm just trying to warn you. In the good fight, you look like this guy--exactly like this guy (Cpl Upham)...

The battle of the bible begins. In one corner we have a crazy nutjob that is insulting and condescending. In the other corner we have a contender who uses his noodle but not about his religious beliefs. Let the acrobatics begin!

“Science is simply common sense at its best, that is, rigidly accurate in observation, and merciless to fallacy in logic.”
—Thomas Henry Huxley